Instrumental Archive 1999-2010

Here is a collection of some of my favorite instrumental tracks from past bands I have worked with from 1999-2008. This collection mostly feature the awesome musicians I had the pleasure of working with including Will Andrews on drums, Chris Cullman on bass, Pat Allen on guitar and Max Kunz on drums.

“Lacuna” is an instrumental track that came out of my time jamming with Max Kunz in Jungle Maps in 2008. It was a simple melodic groove in the 5/4 time signature we used to jam on that eventually became the track you hear. At the time I had been studying Indian classical music and was heavily influenced by the idea of a raga, or a melodic scale that has a specific mood it conveys.

In this track I was attempting to use repeating notes and changing melodies to convey specific moods in each section. The opening melodic line also employs the use of a metal vibrator on guitar strings to create a “spooky” sounding sustained melody. The song would also be performed with a loop machine to build the melodies and layers in a live performance.

Soliloquy was created during my time with the band Omni in 1999. This instrumental track was initially started off by Chris Cullman on his Chapman Stick, a hybrid stringed instrument that is played by tapping the strings. The chordal movement Chris created on his unique intrument was accentuated by the drumming of Will Andrews.

After sitting back and first hearing Chris’s first version of this instrumental piece, I decided to use an E-Bow on my guitar to play a slow melodic line that would help reenforce the chords that Chris had written, without taking over the subtleties of his playing. This track was recorded at Paradise Sound by producer Ronan Chris Murphy.

<a href=”http://omniseattle.bandcamp.com/album/the-album-that-never-was-2002-2008″>The Album that never was 2002-2008 by Omni</a>

This track with the placeholder name “Warr guitar Jam” was created around 2002 with Will Andrews, Chris Cullman and myself in a tiny brick room with no windows in Seattle’s Georgetown neighborhood. This track features an amazing groove developed by Will’s drumming, and Chris’s instrument of choice at the time, the Warr Guitar.

Chris’s unique stringed instrument was a hybrid between a bass and guitar, and was played entirely by “tapping” the strings. This percussive sound of the Warr guitar along side Will’s incredible drumming created a musical bed for me to fit into where I could.

In this track, I utilized a Japanese Fender Strat and tried to sit just behind the groove with chordal shapes and minimal playing. I also utilized a violin bow on the guitar at the end to bring a dramatic melodic climax to the finale. Chris, Will and I often joke together now a days that the guitar solo around the 1:49 mark is probably the weirdest guitar solo I ever put to tape.

<a href=”http://omniseattle.bandcamp.com/album/omni-instrumentals-over-the-ages-1999-2007″>OMNI Instrumentals over the ages 1999-2007 by Omni</a>

‘Why You” was a track written during my last few months with the band Omni. As my time with Omni was winding down, we had created some interesting music in those last days that may never see the light of day. Just prior to my departure, we had written this track, “Why You” and had performed it on several occasions.

Unfortunately, I left prior to recording this track to the level we wanted to, but luckily guitarist Pat Allen joined the band after I left, sat down with past scratch recordings I had made, and learned the song note for note. Pat also put his own spin on parts and made this song his own in his performances.

In a way, I am cheating by sharing this awesome recording of Pat, Will, and Chris, but at least you can hear this interesting song I am proud to say I had a hand in writing! This song utilized a Fernandes Sustainer Guitar with lots of delay, giving an other-wordly melodic quality to the music.

Here is a performance of an untitled track that Pat Allen, and Will Andrews co-wrote with me. After Max had left Jungle Maps in 2009, I decided for a brief time in 2010 to continue on as “Jungle Maps” with some familiar musicians collaborating with me. We wrote this song a couple of days before the show, and decided to perform it as is. This turned out to be a fun performance where we had to think on our feet as we went.